A Complete Guide?! !!

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I was looking through some books at the store the other day and came across one titled "Autism Spectrum Disorders: The Complete Guide to Understanding Autism, Asperger's Syndrome, Pervasive Developmental Disorder, and Other ASDs"

????? I am curious as to how there is a complete guide to ASDs. I might just be out of the loop or something but I really want to know how complete this guide really is and if it is what it claims I need to go back and get it.

Has anyone read this?

I've skimmed it. It just talks about the conditions. It doesn't tell you how to be them.

Well that is misleading. The title maybe should have been "A Semi-complete Guide to Symptoms of ASDs" instead.

I noticed something interesting LONG ago! Something with a name having a generically postive aspect in it's name is often LACKING! A company called "Low Rate Loans Inc." probably has high rates, for example. It is AMAZING how often it works out that way.

book editors are evil. I've found a lot of books with misleading titles. For example i have a book that is named "Who are you? From personality to self-steem", and all the content reads like a scientific manual on personality disorders.

The editors just want to sell, they don't care who buys them.

Actually, I have (and have read) this one (it's by Chantal Sicile-Kira). I was underwhelmed (it's hardly "complete"-and sorry to say, seems to be nothing special). Yet another book that's mostly about children-which I most definately am not. Another reader with different issues & situation might find it worthwhile, but it wasn't my sort of thing.

Tony Attwood's "Complete Guide to Asperger's Syndrome" (which does contain info. on the other PDD's) from a couple years ago is the "gold standard" (according to many people with ASD's, including myself)-if anything can be, in this ever-evolving area of research. I got it in hardcover, perhaps it's out in paperback by now.

If one has appetite for dense clinical material, there's always the pricey anthology text "Asperger Syndrome" edited by Klin, Volkmar & Sparrow.

I wonder why people feel the need to mislead...it only gets people's hopes up before they are smashed to bits. Although I should have known that a complete guide (about anything) is reason enough for doubt.

Cooincidentally, the release date was set for today.

That is good point & I quite agree. However, as these things are hopelessly incomplete, having the word "complete" in title doesn't make them all worthless-just proceed with caution because any product wants to be wanted (purchased, consumed) & will promote itself thusly.
Groovy-all the more reason to recommend it (Attwood's volume). Yes, it's called "complete guide" but is still pretty good: detailed yet evenhanded, which is a tricky job to accomplish especially in such an "emerging field" as this, let alone subject that's so controversial (as to cause or how broad/narrow criteria should be).